Shizuoka airport to open in June

SHIZUOKA (Kyodo) Mt. Fuji Shizuoka Airport, which has been forced to delay its March inauguration due to a problem with clearing trees near its runway, will open on June 4 next year, Shizuoka Gov. Yoshinobu Ishikawa announced Thursday.

The 2,200-meter stretch of an initially planned 2,500-meter runway is not long enough to accommodate jumbo jets. Talks with a landowner opposed to the airport’s construction have not been completed, according to the governor.

The governor announced in October that the scheduled March opening will be delayed, as more work is required on the reduced runway because of the unresolved clearing issue.

Japan Airlines, All Nippon Airways, South Korea’s Asiana Airlines and China Eastern Airlines have said they will serve the airport, linking it with a few domestic cities as well as Seoul and Shanghai.